Houston grand jury indicts 61 in elaborate international scam that cheated thousands of Americans out of $300 Million

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HOUSTON - Talk about outsourcing crime!

The U.S. Attorney's Office says a federal grand jury in Houston indicted 61 people in an international crime scheme out of India that scammed thousands of Americans out of more than $300 Million bucks!

The Feds arrested 20 people in the U.S. on Thursday in connection with the scheme and internationally went after five call centers in India.

"And they've executed nine search warrants across eight states in a coordinated takedown of this organization," Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell announced in Washington press conference.

Officials say the criminal ring involved people calling from India pretending to be government agents.

"These individuals demanded immediate payments from the people they called to avoid deportation, to avoid arrest, or to cover supposedly unpaid income taxes," Caldwell revealed.

Officials say new immigrants and the elderly were often prime targets.

An 85-year-old victim from California was scammed out of $12,000!

And another California victim shelled out $136,000 for a phony IRS bill!

The Feds say the US government never makes phone calls like these, so you should report any similar calls to law enforcement.

Officials hope Thursday's arrests will send a message to organized criminals-- both here and abroad.